I think Reddit’s biggest mistake wasn’t the API moves, but image and video hosting. I can’t even guess how much more it costs them to have all of those unnecessary features to be what? Anon Facebook?
this post was submitted on 08 Dec 2023
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I think it was a pretty good move – for them. You cannot just hotlink a Reddit image anymore, so reposts from Reddit on the Fediverse and other alternatives will need their own image/video hosting, which increases cost. Otherwise, it would be too easy to migrate a subreddit.
Yep, it makes it really difficult to link content here, even for subreddits that want it
I can do images, but I still haven't figured out how to do videos
videos
Me neither. I wonder if people prefer a directly-linked MP4 on GitHub or elsewhere, or a video streaming site (which is less compatible on mobile but allows multiple quality choices). Eventually, I decided to do both for the sake of compatibility: upload to PeerTube, link to the video using the post URL, and use both the embedding ![]() and linking []() syntax in the post text pointing to the direct MP4 link also provided by PeerTube. Example
I’m just saying the choice to host instead of letting res or 3rd party apps clean up the interface while they built a huge archive for the low low price of archiving links and conversations. It was inflated more than it could sustain without becoming more commodified so it kept doing that and here we are.
You took the time to use a fancy curly apostrophe but did not divide the sentences better to make them easier to read?
This is how I think you could restructure the comment for legibility. Did I misinterpret anything? The second clause about RES seems opposite to what it should say, you might need to explain.
I’m just saying: they made the choice to focus on hosting content, and let RES or 3ʳᵈ party apps clean up the interface. They eventually built a huge archive for the very low price of archiving links and conversations. This business model worked and people were used to it, so they continued hosting more, eventually realizing they couldn’t sustain it without ramping up the ads, which is why they limited access this year.
Cool thanks anyways. Edit: sorry that was rude of me. You might’ve been genuinely trying to help, if so, thanks. Judging from your first point though this only seems to be condescending and derails the conversation, hope that wasn’t your intention but that’s how you came across to me.
Well, my attitude is a little bit of both. Did I get the meaning across?
Did I upset you when I was fast and loose on the grammar conventions at 1 in the morning? How does it make you feel when you talk down to people?
Edit: To answer your question, yeah that hostility was obvious at first glance. Just decided to give you the benefit of the doubt, because some people miss grammar conventions, other people miss social conventions, doesn’t mean either deserve to be treated as lesser.
Sorry, I don’t enjoy talking down to people but can't help but be cynical sometimes. I hope we both get some sleep.
Thanks, you too. I’ve slept though, I’m rested, the two days migraines let up which is nice.
Free friendly advice: Look you might be cynical, but this kind of behavior isn’t cynicism and saying that it is is a cop out. It’s unprovoked hostility. It’s helped me to pay attention to those kinds of impulses. Is it pattern in your interactions? You’ll be a happier person when you’re aware and work on the ways that you belittle and alienate other people, even strangers on the internet. If that came across in anyway other than encouraging friendly advice that wasn’t my intention and I truly hope you have a wonderful day, stranger. Best and better yet, we all want a kinder internet!
You're right. Thanks for the advice, I’ll discuss this with my therapist.
Is this a pattern in your interactions?
Unfortunately yes. My grandma talks slowly, often uses filler words and takes time to remember names for objects so she says “that” a lot without it being clear what she’s referring to. This annoys me to no end, probably because of my short attention span. I would like to tolerate that more because she is so nice otherwise.
Also you can't share a reddit image or video easily. It takes you to a reddit thread that you view the video in. And if you don't have the app the mobile browser shoves a "install the app" message every single time you visit.
Even when I used reddit that meant I never shared a reddit video with a single person because that's so fucking obnoxious I was never going to subject my friends to that.
You’re a good friend. I’d just send screen recordings if I ever wanted to share something.
It further locks you into Reddit's garden. And they also ensure the content remains available. If you want to link to it, can forces you to utilize their interface.
At the time I was a bit puzzled but totally makes sense.
Exactly, they have this habit of making things worse for its userbase to consolidate more control over the value we made for them. I can’t help but feel a kinship with the domestication of cows, ‘cool all my favorite grass and cows, huh that fence is new, damn they’re starting to milk us pretty hard, shit are we stuck here?’
For real let me just open image in new tab ffs don't keep redirecting me to new reddit
If you Google around for it you can find an extension or Tampermonkey script that fixes this.
I Googled around and found Lemmy.
There’s no great work around for the image issues here either. Other then have someone willing to store everyone’s uploads. I guess not too bad if not a lot of users on the instance though.
Ok I posted that last comment from my phone, but I'm on my computer now, so here's a link to save you the trouble.
[Chromium extension (via Chrome store)](https://web.archive.org/web/20231208063744/https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/reddit-load-images-direct/fpimmmjbglpnlpbfikgekaaeinminolo/
Thank you! Why is the link a web archive?
Uhh, good question. I didn't think I did that on purpose...
I was originally going to link to a Reddit comment that contained both those links, and I usually use an archive link when doing Reddit links to avoid giving Reddit more clicks. I guess I must have gotten that link from clicking the link in the archived version of the Reddit post?
Reddit's ~~image hosting is~~ garbage.
FIFY
Wait until you see the videos.
I mean, really, wait... And keep waiting... Wait more... More... Ok, now you can see it! Oh, no, it lasts more than a second, just wait a bit...
...and even if it loads, it'll be grainy and ugly and consists of eight or so pixels - maybe nine if your connection is top tier. Before I nuked my account, I redownloaded all videos I had uploaded over the course of the last couple of years, but then decided against reuploading them to youtube because all of them look like sh*t now. I'd be embarrassed to put something like that into my YT account.
... and it is defo reddit's fault, because when I uploaded the videos back in the day I often struggled to keep the file size under 1GB, whereas the same videos downloaded later now have 87 MB on average ... less than a tenth of the original data, still the same lenght and content, but the quality took a huge, very noticable nosedive.
You don’t say?